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Another One Bites the Dust
Another One Bites the Dust ''is a track from ''The Game ''(1980), written by John Deacon. The song saw a change in style for the band but was a worldwide hit, charting at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reaching number seven in the UK SIngles Chart. It is still the bestselling Queen song ever released. History and Composition John Deacon's bass line was inspired by the song ''Good Times by the disco group Chic. In an interview with New Musical Express, Chic co-founder Bernard Edwards stated, "...that Queen record came about because that Queen bass player... spent some time hanging out with us at our studio". Recording sessions were produced by Reinhold Mack at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany and consisted of Deacon playing almost all the instruments: bass, piano, rhythm and lead guitars and handclap percussion. Roger Taylor added a drum loop and Brian May contributed some noises with his guitar and an Eventide Harmonizer. There are no synthesisers used in the song: all effects are created with pianos, guitars, and drums, with subsequent tape playback performed in reverse at various speeds. Finally, some sound effects were run through the harmonizer for further processing. The effect of the harmonizer can be heard clearly in the "swirling" nature of the sound immediately before the first lyric. "I'd been wanting to do a track like 'Another One Bites The Dust' for a while, but originally all I had was the line and the bass riff. Gradually, I filled it in and the band added ideas. I could hear it as a song for dancing but had no idea it would become as big as it did. The song got picked up off our album and some of the black radio stations in the US started playing it, which we've never had before. Michael Jackson actually suggested we release it as a single. He was a fan of ours and used to come to our shows'' -'' John Deacon'' After attending a Queen concert in Los Angeles, Michael Jackson suggested to Freddie Mercury backstage that Another One Bites the Dust be released as a single. The earlier live performances of the song had drummer Roger Taylor on lead vocals during the chorus, as opposed to the album version which was sung by Mercury in its entirety. In later performances, parts of the chorus were sometimes not sung by any member of the band, letting the audience sing it instead. Improvisation sections replaced the instrumental area in the middle of the song in later live performances (most notably on the Magic ''tour), and Freddie would have a call and responce session with the crowd. Live Versions Live versions of the song are included on the releases ''Live Magic ''(1986), ''Live at Wembley ''(1986), ''Queen on Fire - Live At The Bowl ''(1982) and Queen Rock Montreal (1981). It is also featured in Hungarian Rhapsody (1986) CD release, but the performance was not present in the DVD release. It was also frequently played on the Queen + Paul Rodgers tours and was performed on the 2012 tour with Adam Lambert. Due to Deacon's departure May took over the bass line tune on his guitar. Hidden Message Claims In the early 1980s, ''Another One Bites the Dust was one of many popular rock songs that Christian evangelists alleged contained subliminal messages through a technique called backward masking. It was claimed that the chorus, when played in reverse, will be heard as "decide to smoke marijuana" or "It's fun to smoke marijuana". A spokeswoman for Hollywood Records (Queen's current US label) has denied that the song contains a backward message. Lyrics Steve walks warily down the street, With the brim pulled way down low Ain't no sound but the sound of his feet, Machine guns ready to go Are you ready, Are you ready for this Are you hanging on the edge of your seat Out of the doorway the bullets rip To the sound of the beat Chorus Another one bites the dust Another one bites the dust And another one gone, and another one gone Another one bites the dust Hey, I'm gonna get you too Another one bites the dust How do you think I'm going to get along, Without you, when you're gone You took me for everything that I had, And kicked me out on my own Are you happy, are you satisfied How long can you stand the heat Out of the doorway the bullets rip To the sound of the beat Chorus Another one bites the dust Another one bites the dust Another one bites the dust Another one bites the dust There are plenty of ways you can hurt a man And bring him to the ground You can beat him You can cheat him You can treat him bad and leave him When he's down But I'm ready, yes I'm ready for you I'm standing on my own two feet Out of the doorway the bullets rip Repeating the sound of the beat Chorus Other Uses The song is used in the Queen musical We Will Rock You and is sung by the character 'Killer Queen' in Act II of the show. A Wyclef Jean remix version (released 1998) featured in the American film Small Soldiers.